Freedom
by Shooting Star Sky Saint
Summary: First HTTYD fanfic. The vikings of Berk didn't change in an instant, even if Hiccup was the one who saved their lives. They continued to bias Hiccup until they finally drove him to run away with Toothless, but Hiccup didn't know that when he chose to be independent that he'd have to take care of a baby. The time for childhood's end is now as Hiccup struggles to be a father.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello :) this is mah first HTTYD fanfic. Personally, I LOVE the movie and the books AND the music (Coming Back Around is so beast) so... without further ado, I hope you all enjoy this story. **

**I do not, quite unfortunately, own How to Train Your Dragon...**

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_This is Berk. It's twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death. It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery. My village. In a word, sturdy. It's been here for seven generations, but every single building is new._

- _Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III_

* * *

_In the dead of the night, flames raged through Berk, the roars of the shoreline waves crashing against the island merged horribly with the roars of the village's dragons. Screams of dread and anger rose in the air as the vikings of Berk fought hellfire to save their villages._

_Snotlout quickly gripped Astrid's arm. He successfully yanked her away from the burning building that within seconds ignited and exploded. Shards of wood and hellfire fell from the sky and seared the unlucky vikings that happened to be near by._

_Snotlout cursed harshly. Astrid staggered to her feet, she wobbled and groaned. Snotlout took notice to her dizzy demeanor and asked, "Are you okay?"_

_Astrid glared at Snotlout for a second before hissing, "I'm wonderful. What about you?"_

_Snotlout narrowed his eyes. "I'm trying to be nice here."_

_"Well don't try. Just stay out of my way and-" Astrid hitched a breath as a high screeching noise rose in the air._

_"Look out!" A Viking shouted._

_Before Astrid knew it, she was being tackled back to the wet searing ground. A voice screamed in the back of her head. "GET DOWN!"_

_"Night Fury!"_

_The screech turned into a high shrill. It clawed at the air and wrenched through the dark night as Astrid watched and looked up from her little place on the ground to see a dragon as dark as night tear away the sky._

_The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself..._

_Suddenly, another explosion erupted from somewhere in the village. And Astrid knew that the dragon had it its mark._

_It never misses..._

_"Snotlout! Astrid! Are you two okay?" Astrid looked up to find Fishlegs running towards them with a bucket of water in one hand and the twins at his side._

_"Ooooh, love on the battlefield~" Tuffnut cooed._

_"She could do better," Ruffnut chuckled. Astrid growled and shoved Snotlout off of her._

_"I did do better." Astrid pulled herself to her feet and glared at the dark night sky above._

_"Yah, well. Your better is doing a great job at destroying our village," Fishlegs said, sighing. Astrid turned to look at him but decided against slapping him with her shield. She was sure that Fishlegs wasn't meaning to rub this in her face, he really wasnt the type to do that. Fishlegs was just stating the facts of what was currently happening and for Astrid, that's what she needed._

_She needed truth and clarity right now more than ever. But at this moment, she had to shove away her own ambitions for the safety of her village. For her people._

_Astrid sighed and looked around at the burning buildings around her. Burning. Everything just... burning. This had all seemed so familiar to her... but not just to Astrid, but too Fishlegs, Snotlout, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut._

_They had seen their possessions burn. They had seen their people burn. They had seen their village burn and turn to ash before having to be rebuilt. But this... this burning... this Fire could have been avoided unlike the fires from the past._

_"Where are our dragons?" Snotlout harshly asked._

_Fishlegs swallowed dry air before mumbling, "I sent them to help get some of the villagers out of their houses..."_

_"What? Why did you do that? How are we suppose to fight without them!" Snotlout shouted in fury, inching dangerously close to the oversized viking._

_"No," Astrid intervened, "it's best to save as many people as we can for right now. It's better if we-"_

_Another high pitched roar interrupted Astrid._

_"Night Fury! Get down right now!"_

_The unholy retching howl pierced Astrid's ears. She closed her eyes but felt the earth around her shake and quiver with strain. Another building destroyed. More lives possibly - hopefully not - lost._

_Astrid forced her eyes open as she saw tons of vikings scurry to help the wounded. There were no dragons to fight in this battle. This was only a fight against fire and nothing more. Fire caused by one dragon. One dragon... as far as Astrid could tell. It all happened so quickly - too quickly - for Astrid to recount the last thirty minutes of chaos. Maybe there were ten dragons attacking... only maybe..._

_"Hey Astrid, isn't that your house over there," Fishlegs said, "on **fire**."_

_Ah, son of Thor._

_Tuffnut and Ruffnut laughed out loud. However, Astrid found herself sprinting to her burning home. Of course, the house itself didn't matter to her. It was like her tenth... or twelfth... new house, but Astrid was a little more concerned about who was actually inside of the home. Faintly, she could hear weak coughs and gags._

_Her mother and father were surely not inside, they were out trying to save the villagers trapped in their homes. Still, Astrid kept hearing those coughs and sobs._

_The __**girl**__ couldn't have been in there... _

_Clenching her teeth, Astrid prepared to kick down the door but was flung back as someone on the inside knocked it down._

_Astrid hissed at the sudden action and blinked her eyes rapidly to clear her vision. She watched as her house collapsed in on itself. Nothing but flames and wood sank to the ground as a figure walked out of the fire and in the direction of Astrid._

_Instinctively, Astrid reached for the knife in her back pocket. Astrid glanced over the details if this man. He was heavily armored from his waist line and up, metal armor with a dark red symbol of some sort engraved on the right side of his shoulder_. _Two belts clasped around his body, one heavily thick boot covered one of his legs but a metal prosthetic had replaced his other long lost leg, and on his arms were extended lengths of his armor that homaged sharp metal daggers. Perhaps the most riveting feature on this man was the steel helmet that hid all of his face and head but his sharpened and dark green eyes._

_She didn't recognize this stranger as one if her own - not anymore - so she watched him intently before the male figure stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of her knife._

_Astrid smirked to herself. "You're still a coward, aren't you." She wanted to say this because it was right. This man was low. He was scum. He was a traitor._

_"**WHERE IS SHE**?" Hiccup roared furiously._

_Astrid took a battle stance and pointed her sharp dagger at the man._

_Astrid watched in silent amusement as the armored male tilted his head to the side and narrowed his eyes. He sighed loudly and for the first time, Astrid realized that he was carrying two objects in his hands - one of which was moving violently._

_"You used a *Garden Dragon as an alarm for your house? I never actually thought of doing that, well, specifically because I already have someone who will alert me of danger," The man squeezed his fingers tightly around the squirming dragon's neck. It thrashed even more violently before Hiccup finally released it. The dragon quickly flew off. "Where's your loyal Deadly Nadder, Astrid?"_

_The blonde growled. He sounded so condescending, purposely mocking Astrid as if she was the one at fault. She charged at Hiccup with a knife in hand but before she could even get within an inch closer, Hiccup knocked into her with his own body and pulled her to the ground._

_Astrid groaned but fought against Hiccup's hold on her, but he was holding onto her tightly - painfully tightly actually. Within seconds, she realized what the other object Hiccup was holding in his hand. At her neck was a sword endowed in real raging fire. He held the sword so close to her neck that sparks from the flames cackled and sizzled on her skin._

_"I didn't come back here to play Astrid," Hiccup harshly spat. Astrid squirmed in numb pain under the the heat of the flames. "I'm going to ask this once because I don't really care about anything else outside of the answer you **will** give me."_

_Astrid clenched her teeth. "I'm not telling you anything," she spat in his face, literally. The saliva slid down his helmet before Hiccup groaned in annoyance. He slid his body weight over Astrid to hold her steady while he carefully removed his helmet. The sword in his hand still pressed dangerously close to her neck just as Hiccup threw his metal helmet to the side and unveiled his aged and mature face._

_"I believe we'd both feel better if I didn't have to use this," Hiccup inched his sword closer to Astrid's neck and received a forced back whimper in response, "on your beautiful face."_

_Astrid scowled up at him and he did the same to her. "Astrid, where is she?" He asked, anger leaking like poison from his voice._

_"Where is my daughter?"_

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**Continue? Did you all like this story so far? **


	2. Chapter 2

**It's the first of October! Yay!** **Who's up for tricking... and of course treating :) nothing beats free candy. Even if your mom still worries about it being poisoned. But if it is, don't just throw it away :( people worked heard and gave care into giving you that death candy XD oh I'm so joking by the way. DONT EAT POISONED CANDY. **

**ANYWAYS. WOW. Honestly, I didn't expect for this story to get so many reviews and favorites AND follows :,D you all made me so happy. I read actually reading ya'lls reviews in algebra class when so wondered about something very important. I never really came up with a name for Hiccup's daughter xD I know, imma fail. So, I was thinking that you all could vote on a name when I post the next new chapter, but if ya'll have any suggestions for the name PM me and we'll talk. **

**You all know the deal. I don't own HTTYD :( **

**Now enough of my ramblings! ENJOY THE CHAPTER. **

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_My name's Hiccup. Great name, I know, but it's not the worst. Parents believe a hideous name will frighten off gnomes and trolls. Like our charming Viking demeanor wouldn't do that._

_- Hiccup __Horrendous Haddock III_

* * *

_Six years earlier..._

Never give anything back to the people who believe they are more superior.

Hiccup learned this the hard way. The painful way.

He learned that his own people, who once hated him then loved him and then went back to hating him, would sooner throw him out to the sharks than deal with him personally.

Three weeks after the battle with the Red Death, Hiccup became the lighter of his village. Every viking needed him for a specific "civil" duty, and Hiccup, being himself, always accommodated to whomever's needs.

However, today he could relax. Well, Hiccup actually just had a day to himself. His father had sailed off with a handful of vikings for a peace treaty in the south. Now today, Hiccup could spend the day doing what he has been doing for the past week.

Outside of his house, Hiccup walked steadily and slowly towards his dragon. He was starting to get use to new and "improved" leg, walking became more like running and running became more like balancing.

Although, Hiccup hated to tell anyone, but his prosthetic still hurt him whenever he walked or stood. It wasn't much pain, more like a dull ache but it still bothered Hiccup to no end. Somedays the ache would be there, stabbing at his muscles, and other days there just wouldn't be any pain.

"Ah," Hiccup grunted as he pushed more pressure on his stump. He continued to walk and watched Toothless from a distance. Easily enough, his goal for today was just to walk around his home a six times. Simple enough. Hiccup was on his last stride and Toothless was on the other side of him, eating the classes of fish Hiccup had caught him for breakfast.

"Well, you're hungrier than usual," Hiccup huffed with a smirk, "I wonder if that has anything to do with that Starfish you ate last night."

Toothless cringed and glared at Hiccup. He snorted and raised his head high.

"Yep, that's what I thought," Hiccup chuckled, panting a bit as he picked up his pace. "I told you not to eat it and what do you do? You throw it on my face and lick it off. That was very mature of you."

Toothless grinned and cocked his head to the side as if to say, 'Me? Mature? Please don't humor me like that'.

"And then after your starfish meal, you throw it up. Everything you ate just painted on my rug like my dad's ar-"

Hiccup flinched when he felt gravity pull unexpectedly down on him. The teen coughed at the sudden fall he had and groaned. Hiccup's face hit the grass first and he faintly tasted the morning dew of embarrassment on his tongue.

Well, that happened. He thought. Hiccup turned his head to the side in an attempt to get up and saw a huge Viking male staring at him. The stranger was only a few feet away, but Hiccup could see the tired and twisted expression on his face.

The two Vikings locked eyes for a moment before Hiccup remembered that he was still on the ground, but strangely enough... at this moment it didn't matter to Hiccup if he was laying in a bed of fire ants.

The look in this Viking's eyes disturbed Hiccup to no end. He felt a shiver stop in the center of his spine and just stay there, digging slowly into his vertebra until Hiccup forgot what embarrassment tasted like.

Hiccup automatically found what was causing his disturbance. What nailed into his back. He had seen that look before but on different people, different vikings. That same ear-screeching glare had once been on Spitelout, on Tuffnut, on Ruffnut, on Snotlout, on Astrid at one point, and on his father, Stoic the Vast.

Yes - that look of loathing. Of worthlessness. That heart tearing glare that despised Hiccup so much but for reasons Hiccup himself knew but couldn't control.

Hiccup swallowed his unease and once again remembered he was on the ground.

The young Viking prodigy attempted a get up but immediately stopped his progress when he felt a shock of pain surge through his stump.

Hiccup hissed and dropped back to the ground in mild pain. Hiccup looked back at the disgusted viking and didn't expect what he saw next.

The viking narrowed his lean but dragged eyes and scoffed harshly. He spat on the ground near Hiccup, barely missing the teen, before striding off in the opposite direction. He left Hiccup on the ground... he didnt even offer his help knowing that Hiccup needed it.

The teenage viking dropped his frown even lower. He stared at the empty place the viking use to be for a couple of seconds before realizing that Toothless was by his side, ushering him with his nose to get up.

Hiccup leaned on Toothless for support as he finally stood up and breathed clearly. He hadn't even noticed the breath he had trapped in his lungs.

"What was that about...?" Hiccup asked to no one in particular.

Toothless looked up at his rider then back at the empty spot, he couldn't suppress the growl that escaped his reptilian lips. Toothless really didn't like the way that overgrown mammal had treated his human.

Hiccup shook off the uneasiness he sheltered and smiled at Toothless. "That's enough practicing for one morning," he said, "lets go meet up with Astrid and the others. I have to teach them the essentials of training their dragons."

If Toothless was human he would be smirking and raising an eyebrow right now. Hiccup vaguely wondered if dragons did have eyebrows.

"I have to do this, bud."

Toothless tilted his head with a cocky toothless smile on his features.

"I can be a great teacher!"

Toothless poked at Hiccup's stomach, making him stumble backwards.

"You're a load of optimism," Hiccup scoffed as he easily hopped on top of Toothless. Thankfully his riding gear was already strapped tight and sound. As Toothless glanced back at Hiccup before taking off, Hiccup still couldn't get his mind off of that viking. His look, his stance, his distaste to help Hiccup all reminded him of the times before the his victory over the Red Death.

The entire village of Berk had once worn those loathing masks. Hell, the villagers lived with them on whenever they either saw Hiccup or criticized him.

As Toothless finally took flight, Hiccup decided to loose himself in the clouds.

* * *

Arriving at the arena, Hiccup and Toothless both followed through the narrow dark corridor before they entered the caged center. From ahead, Hiccup could see the light at the end of the corridor. The young viking couldn't help the small grin that grew on his face once he saw Snotlout chasing his Monstrous Nightmare. He especially couldn't hold back from laughing after he saw a line of fire fly straight towards Snotlout.

Vaguely, Hiccup could hear Astrid, Fishlegs, and the twins laughing too. As Hiccup prepared to enter the arena to join in the laughter, he stopped dead in his tracks and heard an angry voice shatter his cold feet.

"Hookfang, stop that! Geez, Hiccup told me to pet you like that!"

_You probably patted her too hard_, Hiccup thought. He continued to walk towards the entrance but once again stopped in his place.

"Whatever Hiccup taught you was probably wrong."

Hiccup recognized the voice as Ruffnut's.

"He told me to line Barf and Belch's nest with wood but that makes it uncomfortable for them! So I used hay instead and they're NOT lighting it on fire!"

_That's what Barf and Belch are suppose to do_. Hiccup sighed, _Zipplebacks love setting their nests on fire and their scales are so thick they don't even notice if they're sleeping on a rock pile!_

"Same here."

This time it was Astrid speaking.

"I'm beginning to think Hiccup is just playing with us. He's taught us absolutely nothing about training our dragons-"

"Well, without me you wouldn't even have a dragon..." Hiccup whispered and immediately regretted his words. Toothless glanced up at his rider and sensed his discomfort in waves radiating off his body.

"-and he's done nothing but soak up the fame of taking down the Red Death."

That was Snotlout. Hiccup sighed in irritation.

"Well I was actually learning how to _walk_ again because I lost my foot in the battle but sorry if that impedes on your schedule."

"Hey guys, he's sort of been busy... you know... with his leg and all."

Now that was Fishlegs. Hiccup grinned shyly. At least, someone understood his situation.

"Good point," Astrid said. Hiccup heard her groan, "But at the very least he could give us mild pointers while he's away."

_I suppose I could've..._ Hiccup thought considerately. _I'll actually start doing that now._ Astrid continued to talk out. "I mean, I know he's had some trouble with adjusting to his prosthetic-"

"You mean he IS trouble with his prost- prostat- prota- that word you just used!"

Hiccup hitched a breath.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Astrid asked, a growl in her question.

"I mean he's going to be more trouble than he already is! I mean, what, he's going to need help standing, walking everywhere, whizzing!"

"He can already do all of that perfectly without our help," Astrid said.

"Well, not perfectly... but he can still do all of that." Fishlegs said.

"I'm not helping him to whiz!" Tuffnut laughed.

Snotlout huffed, "Oh then think about what'll happen during an invasion! He'll be tripping all over everyone and hell, maybe he'll accidentally set fire to Berk AGAIN."

Hiccup felt his breaths come shaky and in halves. Suddenly the blood in his veins pounded in his ears and turned cold in his vessels. From here on, Hiccup couldn't connect voice with friend anymore. All sounds were merged violently and painfully together.

_"He wouldn't do that."_

_"Why not. He's still useless." _

_"What are you going-" _

_"He's still Hiccup the **Useless**." _

_"Always has been and always will be the Useless." _

_"Hiccup can save Berk from Deaths sent by Thor but he'll still be worthless."_

_"He's not even a viking."_

_"That's because he's useless." _

_"He may mess up at times but come on... it's not like he's-"_

_"Nope. Still useless." _

And then Hiccup heard a sharp growl from beside him just as he marched into the open. Into the arena.

Hiccup's presence silenced the young vikings, but if course he would now.

Keeping his glare to the ground, Hiccup could vaguely see from behind his locks Toothless with a nightly scowl on his dragon features. His dark emerald eyes were practically glowing with a narrow black slit running down the middle.

"Hey, Hiccup!" Snotlout said in a happy tone. But Snotlout was never that happy, Hiccup knew his cousin well enough to know that. His happiness derived from his snobbiness, his point of view way of speaking that he wants something and hasn't been given it yet.

"Snotlout." Hiccup couldn't help but seethe his name. Hiccup didnt know why he was suddenly so pissed. He was rarely so if not agitated at times, but no - this time Hiccup could set aside his anger for the sake of today. And his blood pressure.

"I have a few things to ask, like, Hookfang doesn't do what I say and he always snaps at me, shoots fire at me, and-"

"Snotlout, there are a few basic needs you need to learn about dragons," Hiccup interrupted his cousin. Hiccup looked at his friends and their dragons to make sure he had their full on attention before continuing. "Alright then, now you know that the dragons are willing to stay close to us."

"Yah."

"They're willing to become part of our tribe."

"Yah."

"Well that's just it then," Hiccup snapped with a smile. "Does anyone know what dragons need most? Of all the things we share with them, what do they need specifically from us?"

"Water?"

"Axes?"

"Litter?"

"Sheep?"

"Fire?"

"_Respect_."

Silence followed after. Snotlout was a loss for words, "Wait, what?"

"Dragons need respect," Hiccup repeated a bit more intensely, "Actually, let me rephrase that, dragons _deserve_ respect. From _us_. From _all_ of **you**."

Once again, that awkward silence sat in between the air. Hiccup sighed but grinned, "Alright, let's begin today's lesson."

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**Mmm... This chapter was a little complex actually. I was trying to stick to everyone's personalities while at the same time, making them seem so... rabid. Anyways, if I do go outside their personalities anyone be free to speak out and tell me :) Anyways, I think I'm going to have Toothless communicate with Hiccup in some way. I don't like how he's so dulled out in the story so far by me just writing what he's doing. I'm going to change that. Anyways, bye ya'll and thanks for reading another chapter!**

**~ Star Out**


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